Tag Archives: Timer

One-of-a-kind ‘Candle Disc’ tracks the passage of time by melting wax in a different way

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Since time immemorial, candles have been used to track time, with the burning of the wick and the disintegration of the candle being used to calculate minutes and hours. Seokoo Yeo’s ‘Candle Go’ brings back that particular feature, but in a unique format. The Candle Go is a wax-warming apparatus that uses disc-shaped candles, melting them almost like a timer. The wax melts radially, sort of like hands of a clock, while gravity allows the candle disc to rotate. The result is a candle experience that’s distinctly unique, allowing you to visually measure time passed. Yeo designed the Candle Go to help you track goals and time spent being productive (sort of like a wax-based Pomodoro timer). At the end, the disc melts away to reveal a medal that rewards you for time spent pursuing your goals.

Designer: Seokoo Yeo

What the Candle Go explores so beautifully is a new way of burning wax. Traditional candles feature a standing design, with a vertical wick that lights at the top, gradually moving downwards as the wax melts away. Historically, markings on the side of the candle would then tell how much time had passed, helping people track minutes and hours. The Candle Go doesn’t do that – instead, it mounts a flat disc of wax on an axis, quite like a vertical CD player of sorts. Rather than having a wick on fire, the Candle Go uses a warming element that melts away parts of the wax in a radial style. The melted wax creates a weight imbalance, getting the disc to rotate on its own. This clever technique uses gravity to its advantage, allowing the entire disc to melt at the end. You can easily track the time just by staring a the shape of the disc. It visually represents a pie-chart of sorts, allowing you to easily and intuitively understand ratios and fractions, therefore figuring out how much time has passed.

The melted wax gathers in a chamber at the bottom, ensuring your tabletop doesn’t get covered with melted wax (the way you’d otherwise face with regular candles). There’s no fire involved too (which could be a safety hazard), although the candle does emanate a warm light that is diffused by the natural properties of the wax.

Once you’ve exhausted your candle disc (and received the reward inside), simply load another disc to keep tracking your goals, and the amount of time dedicated towards achieving them!

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Tactile lamp and timer concept fosters focus and mindfulness in work-from-home arrangements

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Although travel and work restrictions have mostly been lifted already, the office world is really no longer the same. It has now been proven that the work your bosses claim can only be done in the office can actually be done at home or even in a coffee shop, and so more flexible remote working conditions have started to take root in many companies. At the same time, however, the pandemic also proved that working from home is far from being the idyllic scenario that many people dreamed of in the past. Maintaining focus and motivation isn’t exactly easy to achieve, but this curious desk lamp helps develop that sense of balance between work and personal life using a very visual and tactile experience.

Designers: Pinar Aydogdu, Naren Yildirim, Nurbanu Kocak

One of the oldest productivity tricks in the book involves focusing on a single task for a certain amount of time and then taking a brief break before repeating the cycle all over again. Ironic as might sound, this technique, most popular by its “Pomodoro technique” moniker, actually helps you focus during those moments you are working. It also elevates rest to its proper place in our hectic lives, presenting it not as wasted time but as an important factor in boosting productivity.

You’d probably never think that a decorative desk lamp would be the tool to encourage that productivity practice, but the Fall concept design is exactly that. At its most basic, it is composed of a conical lamp standing on a circular base that has a rippling surface, almost like the ripples in a pond. The soft diffused light that the lamp gives isn’t going to be enough to illuminate your work, but that’s not the purpose of the lamp anyway. It works in conjunction with eight balls that magnetically attach to the top of the cone, turning this productivity practice into something like a game.

Each ball represents one hour of working time, so their total makes up an entire day’s work. At the start of your work day, you stick those balls at the top, and after an hour has passed, one ball falls down on the base. Because of the undulating surface of the base, the balls won’t roll off, but you can remove each ball as you please. In fact, you remove the ball from the base to signify that you’re taking a break and you put the ball back on the base when you’re back. If you don’t bring back the ball within a set amount of time, usually ten minutes, the lamp’s light will turn red to nudge you back to your work.

Fall is an interesting idea that encourages physical involvement in juggling those work hours, making sure you’re more mindful of your time instead of simply glancing at a clock or swiping an alarm away. The lamp itself gives a rather distinctive aesthetic, one that encourages play and interactivity instead of just looking pretty. Admittedly, it’s just a concept and one that will be rather complicated to implement in a real functioning device.

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Minimalist Pomodoro timer promises distraction-free productivity

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There are plenty of productivity techniques floating around the Internet, but one of the most popular ones has actually been around even before the Web as we know now came to be. Named after a tomato-shaped kitchen timer, the Pomodoro technique is so simple that it’s too easy to brush it off as trivial, but its effectiveness has also been known for decades. Of course, that has also led to plenty of apps and gadgets that embrace the hype while forgetting the spirit and actually induce stress and distractions rather than productivity. Fortunately, there are better and more creative ways to design a Pomodoro timer, like this minimalist beauty that allows you to enjoy the simple benefits of the technique without having to rely on a clunky analog timer, especially one that looks like an awkward tomato on your desk.

Designer: Gary Peng

The Pomodoro technique is extremely simple and takes advantage of the fact that the human brain can only concentrate on a single thing for a short period of time. In theory, you do that single thing for 25 minutes and then take a break for 5 minutes before repeating the process. Because it’s that simple, you really don’t need complicated tools other than a timer, whether it’s a mechanical kitchen timer or a smartphone app, both of which come with their pros and cons. That kitchen timer can look odd on your desk and a mobile app risks distracting you with other things on your device.

POD is a tool that combines the feeling of an analog timer with the convenience of an electronic device in a simple yet attractive form. It’s nothing more than a small white puck that has five very discreet dot lights on top arranged in an arc. There is no control other than pushing the puck down like a button, which is what starts the countdown.

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Each dot of light represents either five or one minutes, depending on the mode. When you’re in “work” mode, the lights count down to 25 minutes in total, while “break” mode is the usual five-minute period of rest. The POD is also minimally distracting, using only flashing lights to get your attention rather than sounds or vibrations. This means you can easily use it in environments where you need to be very quiet, like in a library.

The POD also relies on trusty CR2032 batteries that you can easily replace, so you won’t have to worry about running out of juice for a long time. Its minimalist charm will make it look at home on any desk, table, or shelf, and doesn’t induce the same tension and stress the same way that a ticking kitchen timer would.

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Meditation timer concept looks hi-tech and probably too distracting

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Although there are definitely a number of naysayers, meditation practices have become quite popular these days in response to the deafening busyness of the world around us. There’s no shortage of services, strategies, and gizmos advertised to help get into that state of calm, but you don’t really need most of those just to meditate. At the very least, all you need is a timer which every smartphone today has. Unfortunately, those smartphones are just too tempting once you place them in your hand, and some opt to have a standalone timer instead. This gadget concept tries to offer such a simple functionality, though with some bells and whistles that, ironically, could prove to be a source of distraction themselves.

Designer: Liudmila Andreeva

Truth be told, some people do need some prompts or guidance to get into that meditative state, which is what guided meditation apps and services try to offer. But once they get used to the process, those aids just become distracting and defeat the purpose. By that stage, all you really need is something that will cue you when it’s time to start and when you need to end the meditation. While any old timer, digital or otherwise, will suffice, why not design something that really takes that utility to the next level?

That might be the impetus behind Decima, a timer designed specifically just for meditation. Like any timer, you get to set the duration of the time and the interval of the reminders. Unlike analog timers, however, you have the ability to set the bell tones, volume, and brightness of the display. And yes, it even has a guided mode if that’s how you like to do things.

The Decima Timer concept offers these functions through easy-to-use buttons on the sides and top of the device. An LCD display on the front shows the time as well as other useful information, like the current mode or setting you’re in. LED lighting shining through the front grille adds a nice accent that makes the device look visually interesting or even mesmerizing.

Of course, your smartphone has the same features, but having a dedicated timing device saves you from the tempting distractions of your phone’s screen. That said, Decima itself might prove to be a distraction because of the multitude of buttons and settings you can play around with. The appearance of the device, while quite attractive, can also cause your eyes and mind to wander away from your meditation, defeating the purpose of what the timer is meant to accomplish.

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Hourglass goes digital with concept for classic sandtimer

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One of my fondest childhood memories is playing games with friends and families using an hourglass sandtimer to count down the minutes. Games like Boggle and Taboo were made all the more fun because you could see the seconds slipping by before it’s your turn and your opponents are running out of time. But when our phones became smarter, we of course turned to these digital devices to count the seconds down and the alarm blaring causes us a different kind of anxiety or joy.

Designer: Fabio Verdelli and Anna Lazzaron

There are those who would prefer to use a timer that doesn’t have any of the other distractions that a smartphone would have, like messages, notifications, calls, and even that pesky alarm tone. A device that can bridge the analog idea of an hourglass and the digital convenience of a timer is found in this product concept called Passatempo, a smart hourglass. It is able to retain the elegant design of the hourglass sand timer but this time, it is able to add a digital concept to it that makes it more elegant.

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There isn’t really much of a description to it but based on the product renders, it doesn’t seem to use actual sand like in the traditional timers. It is still enclosed in a glass structure and the cone shape is still there and you can see the seconds or minutes passing by as it transfers from one cone to another. This time though you will be able to set how long it needs to “pour” through an app. You can use it to set a timer for when you’re cooking or to give you a visual idea of when it’s time for an appointment or you can use it for board games as well.

Of course the most convenient way really to set alarms and timers is on your smartwatch or smartphone. But if you want something a bit unusual or something that looks pretty elegant or just something that kind of looks analog, then the Passatempo may be something you’ll be interested in.

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These new-generation candles add a calming process to your bedtime routine

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Don’t we all fall asleep every night while scrolling through our phones? Attending to all of the notifications received throughout the day feels like a responsibility. However, responding to any of these notifications opens up an entire thread of messages, causing you to lose track of time and fall behind on your sleep routine.

People in the pre-tech era had better sleeping habits. Blue light is harmful to the eyes and affects one’s circadian rhythms (aka sleep-wake cycle) which is why it is recommended that one does not look at any screen till two hours before sleeping in order to have a good and well-rested sleep.

Designer: Pelin Özbalcı

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Candles were utilized for purposes other than fragrance in the past. Candle timers are thin candles with evenly spaced markings that, when lighted, represent the passage of time. They also provided a soothing environment to promote one’s circadian rhythms but lacked the ease and dependability of modern technologies. Many people find it difficult merely to lie down and sleep. Our minds are glued to the distractions that the screens offer. We wait till our eyes fatigue and dry out and we can no longer stay awake. This one-of-a-kind method for truly unwinding and relaxing your mind is exactly what you need to incorporate into your everyday sleep regimen.

CClock is a modern-day candle timer that incorporates simple mechanic controls while retaining the simplicity and tranquility of traditional candle clocks. This product allows one to reap the benefits without having to worry about running out of wax.

The clock features an adjustable lever and a darkened timer, allowing customers to personalize their experience and adapt it to their preferred ambiance. This keeps a person preoccupied and disconnected from the screen one can zone out and eventually fall asleep by watching the candle burn out. The approach encourages a healthy sleep cycle. However, the use of yellow light as an alternative to the currently recommended white light can be looked into it. Yellow light is better suitable for resting eyes and would improve the peaceful experience by proving beneficial for circadian rhythms.

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The body of the battery-operated CClock has a sleek and modern appearance and is accented with six orange dots, each signifying 10 minutes of total timer capacity for a maximum of 60 minutes. This allows customers to set their desired relaxation time easily and correctly, with clear and easy indicators that improve usage and convenience.

CClock can also be used as part of the ambient lighting in a room. To illuminate the entire product, flip the lever upwards once it has reached its maximum position and has darkened entirely. This operation will disable the timer and allow the candle to burn completely and indefinitely. This function gives users more freedom in how they use the device by allowing them to switch from timed relaxation to full candlelight as needed.

The design can be upgraded by adding a feature of the sunlight alarm. Sunlight alarms are lights that progressively brighten up at a set time allowing you to gradually experience and wake up as the sun rises. Combining the 2 products would undoubtedly upsell this thoughtful design.

The candle’s framework is intended to be versatile. In addition to serving as a stable platform for the electronic candle and lever mechanism, the base has a small compartment for rings or other small things. This enhanced functionality allows consumers to store jewelry, hair accessories, chains, earphones, or any other valuables while using the device in a convenient and secure location.

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Smart home device concepts empower visually-impaired members of society

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Our homes and appliances are becoming more powerful, but they are also becoming more complicated. Many interfaces are fortunately being reworked to simplify our interaction with these devices, but almost all of them still require a clear view of what the interfaces are. Sure, there are voice commands nowadays, as well as AI, but as any smart homeowner has experienced, these aren’t always fast or reliable. Unfortunately, all these new interfaces, even the minimalist ones, tend to cut off those with vision disabilities, depriving them not only of enjoyment or convenience but also of a sense of confidence and security in their own homes. It doesn’t actually take much to design with accessibility in mind, and as these three smart device concepts show, such creative designs might be useful or even fun for those who can see perfectly as well.

Designer: Jaehee Lee, Byeonguk Ahn, Minseok Kim

Many smart devices today tend to value aesthetics or functions too highly without considering how those would negatively impact the experience of people who are either blind or visually impaired. Some have too many buttons or have buttons that are all shaped similarly, making it difficult to tell by touch which one is which. Worse, there are those that use only touch controls on flat glass surfaces, which are completely useless unless you can see their marks. Beyond Sight is a collection of concept designs that address these flaws by using unambiguous motions and shapes that actually look fun to use, regardless of the state of your vision.

A smart speaker, for example, uses simple taps to play or pause the audio. Volume is controlled by sliding a ball up or down a pole while changing tracks involves turning the dial at the top. For people who can’t see or can’t see clearly, these definite tactile controls leave no room for guessing their functions. For those that can see what the speaker looks like, the design adds an element of fun and play to a device that has almost become too utilitarian these days.

The smart remote control might look and feel like a toy flashlight, but its polygonal shaft does more than provide a good grip. To change channels, you roll the device to one or the other side. To turn the TV on, you simply put the remote down from a standing to a lying position. The head of the device is a dial that you can turn to adjust the volume, and a large button lets you summon your voice-controlled AI assistant to do the more advanced functions that the remote doesn’t support. Admittedly, the rolling gesture might be a bit cumbersome, especially if you need to go through many channels quickly.

Lastly, a timer imitates the primary mechanism of rotary phone dials of the past so that people can slip their finger into the large hole and read the time in Braille. Setting the timer involves just turning that dial to the desired amount of time in 1, 3, 5, 10, 15, 30, and 60-minute intervals. The circular surface of the device slopes down toward that hole, easily guiding the finger to where it needs to be.

For those with visual impairments, the designs of these concept devices give them enjoyment and security in a home that’s increasingly becoming impersonal and intimidating for them. For those that can see clearly, the devices’ designs give them a toy-like character that hints not only at their ease of use but also at their fun controls, proving that accessible designs can truly benefit everyone.

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This nap timer concept marries simple analog controls with a digital display

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Most of us probably like taking naps during the day. Some people might even find it necessary to get through a tiring workday. There are studies suggesting that even a 20 to 30-minute “power nap” can be beneficial to productivity, though the problem is getting that amount of time right without undercutting or overspending. We have alarm clocks for that, of course, including the ones that can be found on our smartphones. Despite the proliferation of these general-purpose utilities, there’s still something to be said for a specialized tool dedicated solely to counting down the minutes until you wake up. Especially when said tool is a beautiful throwback to the past with some modern conveniences thrown in as well.

Designer: Andrea Senatori

We have plenty of timers and clocks around our house or, at the very least, in our pockets. Most probably use their smartphones for anything that needs counting down or up, while some might have a separate alarm clock beside their bed, set to ring on one or a few specific times in a day. A dedicated nap timer, however, offers simplicity and ease of use. There are no other functions to worry about or other timers you might get confused with. Simply set the timer when you want to take a nap, and that’s it.

It doesn’t get simpler than what the Spot 2 concept brings. It has one purpose and one purpose only, to ring an alarm after a specified period of time. Its controls are dead simple, too. There’s one large dial to set how long the timer goes and a smaller one for controlling the volume. These are presented as analog controls, so there’s absolutely no ambiguity in how they work.

This mix of analog with digital has both aesthetic and psychological aspects. The latter brings back familiar physical controls, putting the power back under our fingertips. At the same time, the nap timer looks interesting and attractive, especially with the ongoing trend to create retro-looking products. It isn’t all old-school, of course, with a monochrome display that prominently shows the timer as well as other details like the date, time, and even the temperature.

The Spot 2 nap timer concept is simple yet effective in conveying its purpose in an interesting yet easy-to-use manner. The dials leave little to the imagination in how to control the device, while the digital display distills information down to only the most essential parts. After all, when you’re body’s craving a short nap, the last thing you want to do is fiddle with your phone or alarm clock and have your brain too distracted or too engaged to sleep.

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Sleepy kitchen timer can help keep messy hands off devices

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I’m not much of a cook but the few times that I did find myself in the kitchen, it’s to try and follow a recipe to the letter. Most of the time that involves using timers aka my smartphone. But a lot of times also, my hands are dirty or preoccupied so it’s a hassle to have to use a device. Either my phone gets dirty or if I’m more careful, I have to go and wash my hands every once in a while and that may lead to a few missed seconds or minutes. A new product concept will help solve that problem.

Designer: Rory Wen and -1Pt

The device is simply named Timer Bob and is described as a “sleepy kitchen timer”. The designers wanted to put a personality to the timer since it will probably be one of your best friends in the kitchen. The device is something that you will be able to use without needing to touch it which can be convenient for the cook with the messy hands. There is also some sort of interactivity between the user and the timer, hence the need to add a “personality”.

In fact, the designers had some prototypes for other interactive kitchen products like a monster-like toaster or a man head blender, which they got as a result from some small market research. They decided on further developing the sleepy timer as it’s the most interesting among the other ideas that they had. They have since then created a prototype for it, plus a storyboard on how it would actually work.

Basically, all you have to do is put your hand in front of the screen and it will set up your timer. You nudge it first to wake it up so it will start to work. The distance between your hand and the LED screen will determine how long the timer will be set. As time goes by, it starts to get sleepy until it starts sleeping and snoring. What they didn’t include in the storyboard and explanation is how the alarm works. In any case, if you need to restart the timer, you have to turn it to another side which can happen by nudging.

In terms of functionality, this would be helpful for those in the kitchen who need timers for their recipes and would rather not get their smartphones messy. The character of a sleepy timer also seems pretty cute so this is something that may actually work in the market.

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This smart-speaker is the ultimate kitchen assistant, helping you make shopping lists and curating recipes

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Here’s a product that solves a bunch of problems smart fridges could not. The Foody, by Salvo Lo Cascio is a kitchen-specific smart speaker concept that does practically everything like help you plan shopping lists, choose healthier ingredients, keep track of items you’ve bought and their expiration date, curate recipes based on the stuff you’ve got in your fridge and pantry, and guide you through your cook, with timers and instructions to help you whip up delicious meals.

The Foody looks like most smart-speakers, but comes with a few crucial design details that set it apart. While it is, in spirit, a smart speaker, perhaps the most interesting detail on the device is a circular display on the top that slides from left to right. Apart from acting as a screen for viewing things like recipe-thumbnails and cooking times, the display also acts as a switch that lets you tell the Foody speaker what’s in your pantry versus what isn’t. A camera sits at the central position of the circular slider, allowing you to scan the items you purchase. When you buy an item, keep the slider-display towards the left and scan the item to tell Foody you just bought it. When you run out, slide the display to the left and scan it again to let the smart speaker know you’ve consumed it. By scanning the product, Foody also creates an estimate of when it’ll expire, giving you a rough idea of by when you should consume the food.

Its pantry-managing chops aside, the speaker works as a recipe-curating device too! Once it accurately identifies what you’ve got in your pantry, the Foody generates recipes for dishes based on your stock. Conversely, if you’re missing a few items, the speaker can ask you to add it to your shopping list, or allow you to order it through a voice command. When all the ingredients are there and ready, the smart-speaker guides you through the recipes with background narrations as well as a kitchen timer so that your food is cooked to absolute perfection! Bon Appetit!

Designer: Salvo Lo Cascio